Ocean of Tears
by SirGecko
Summary: (one-shot) Isaac is in mourning the loss of the one he loved, and he needs to do something to ease his soul and free some of the aching sadness threatening to overcome him (mudshipping, in a sense). [R&R, please.]


Well, this is SirGecko with a one-shot. Another sad one-shot, though this one I think is much better than the first. Because of this (and because of some odd compulsion within me not to do this), I will not post any author notes at the end. All will be done here.

Anyway, for the stupid-ass disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN GOLDEN SUN. IF I DID, THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN RELATIONSHIPS.

Anyway, on with the story. Oh, and REVIEW AT THE END!

****

****

**Ocean of Tears**

The air was dead-silent.

Torrential rain drenched the gathering at Vale's town plaza. It had been raining for two days straight, and the river running through Vale was threatening to flood. They were all cold and soaking wet, but they hardly noticed.

They hardly cared.

Their heads were bowed. Their hands were clasped and resting against their fronts, and their eyes were looking at the muddy, wet ground. Nobody dared make a sound. Nobody even moved. For that was not polite when honoring someone for the last time.

For what should have been four returning from Mars Lighthouse was only three.

Four strong men lowered a casket into the ground there. They didn't even grunt, though they were the only ones doing any work. A town elder stood above them all, reading a passage from a small, rain-soaked book, his voice being the only sound to break through the gloom. All were listening intently to the passage so that they may one day find restitution for the situation.

All except one.

This young man was at the front of the group. He had ignored the wetness of the earth, and was on his knees in front of the casket. His silent tears mixed with the rain as they dripped on the ground. He could see them, the others could not. But Mother Nature didn't care. It was all tears in the end.

All tears of Mother Nature.

This was what the town elder was talking about in his book, how the Gods were crying with them on this day, that the Gods mourned just as much as the gathering did. That was why rain was falling upon them now. That was his explanation. But Isaac didn't believe it.

Isaac frankly didn't care. The only words running through his mind as he sobbed in silence were _"Why? Why did it have to be her?"._ And whether it was raining or the sun was blazing, they would still be here today. She still would be dead. And he still would have mourned.

But mourning doesn't stop there. He knew he would be alone and depressed for many years to come.

When the gathering paid their respects, they left the gathering to go to a reception. Isaac stayed right where he was. How inconsiderate, Isaac thought with a scowl. People mourn the loss of someone, and then go have a drink.

He didn't move form his spot, he didn't say a thing. He didn't do anything except mourn the loss of the one he loved for the rest of the day. Until night came.

And he still didn't move, not until he made his decision.

It wasn't right.

Isaac did not approve of the way this burial transpired. It was not what she wanted at all. He remembered. He remembered that day, the weather, the words spoken like it had only just happened . . .

-_flashback-_

_The ship swayed with the waves of the blue carpet that was the ocean, and the ship creaked with the rocking. But that just added to the contentment that went with an ocean voyage. A small wave made the ship sway a little harder, and an ocean breeze hit Isaac's and Mia's faces. The day was cloudless, and seagulls called to each other overhead. _

_While Garet and Ivan got in a nap, Isaac and Mia had decided to remain on deck and soak in the sunlight and natural beauty. Both were lying flat on the deck, staring up at the sky. It looked so simple without a cloud, and yet it was beautiful all the same._

_"I could lie here forever," Isaac sighed._

_"It really soothes you, doesn't it?" Mia said contentedly. "One could almost forget their most prominent troubles by just looking up at the sky on a ship. One could get lost in its sheer beauty."_

_"I already am," Isaac said._

_Neither said anything for a moment. The silence was refreshing too, broken only by a white cap gently hitting the side of the ship or the occasional screech of a seagull. Then Mia broke the silence._

_"When I die, I'd like to be buried out at sea," she said._

_"Don't think so darkly and so far ahead," said Isaac sharply, looking at her. "You, I mean we, have a long life ahead of us. There's plenty of time to think about things like that."_

_"I know," said Mia, turning to face Isaac and clasping his hand. "It's just that being buried in the earth is such a horrible way to recognize a dead person." She paused, and smiled reminiscently. "I remember my mother telling me that if people were committed to the ocean, their spirit would be able to explore and discover things in the world and ocean beyond anyone's wildest dreams." She sighed happily. "I believed that for such a long time too."_

_"Why don't you anymore?" Isaac asked, lost in both the scenery and Mia's soft, pleasant voice. _

_"I'm almost eighteen now," she laughed. "That was just a fairy tale to lull me to sleep when I was young. But it did bring about my wish of being buried at sea instead of in a cemetary."_

_"I'm glad it's just a fairy tale," said Isaac, and they both chuckled._

_-end flashback-_

Oh, it wouldn't be a fairy tale anymore. Isaac would make sure of that.

It had been a few minutes since Isaac finally moved for the first time in hours. He had grabbed a shovel, and in the dead of night when it was still pouring down rain, he was digging the coffin out of the ground. He made noise while doing it; anything to escape from the other, horrible kind of silence. Eventually he was able to get the coffin out of the ground using the Lift Gem, one of Mia's possessions. Now he had everything ready.

He would not be returning to Vale.

He now used the Carry Stone to set the coffin gently down onto a wagon. Once this was done, he checked the wagon to make sure he had all his possessions. When he confirmed this, he climbed aboard the wagon and snapped the whip forward. And the two horses rode out of Vale for the five-day trip to Imil.

-------

It was a long five days.

But eventually, the wagon entered the frozen town of Imil, blessed by a recent snowfall that made the town look like one that would appear on a Christmas card. Isaac didn't think of this though. Just being in her hometown wanted to make him break down again. But he did not. He set his face in stone, rode through Imil, and headed straight to the docks.

Greeting the wizened old man there who operated them, he got off his horse. They shook hands and talked some idle small talk. The only reason that Isaac engaged in this was so he could ease his conscience, which was feeling guilty about his decision. But eventually it was time to get down to business.

"I would like to buy that boat over there. I'll give you this wagon, the horses, plus fifty thousand coins for it."

"Well, normally I just rent them out . . ." the old man growled. But after seeing the look of sadness on Isaac's face, he thought no more about refusing. ". . . but since your offer is so generous, I can live with that," the old man growled. "May I ask what you are doing?"

Isaac replied clearly, "I"m carrying out the wish of my deceased true love. She want- she wanted to be buried out at sea." By the time he had finished, his voice was cracking.

"I'm sorry for your loss," the old man said. "When are you returning?"

Isaac paused for a minute before responding, storing away the guilty feelings in the broken part of his heart. "I'm not," he responded.

The man hid his raised eyebrows but said no more, and instead helped Isaac load the coffin and his personal belongings onto the ship. It was smaller than the Lemurian Ship, but it was far larger than a sailboat, and would be more than enough for Isaac's needs. He thanked the old man generously, and set out to sea.

Minutes later, the coastline that Isaac would not see for a long time faded into the distance. He was all alone with his thoughts. All alone until he got to Izumo. There was nothing to keep him company.

Except Mia's body.

-------

Three days later, when Isaac had sailed far, far away from the Angaran coastline, he had reached the spot where he wanted to do it. It was the spot he and the rest were at when Isaac and Mia shared that one special memory together on the deck of the Lemurian Ship.

He dropped the anchor and extended the plank. Once this was done, he very, very carefully guided the coffin onto the plank until it was at the end. Puffing slightly, he got up and stared at the coffin, trying to think of some good words to say before he lost the chance.

"Mia . . ." he started. "Ever since I met you, I dreamed of sharing my life with you. But now, since the tragic day that you left me, I find that I cannot do that." He stopped here to regain his composure, and continued. "So I remember that one special memory that I will hold dear forever, and in so doing, carry out your final request."

With one swish of his blade, he cut the plank cleanly and both it and the coffin fell into the water with a loud splash. The coffin resurfaced and began to float away with the current. Isaac watched it intently for several minutes until it drifted out of sight. Isaac gave a shuddered sigh and fought the odd impulsion to sail after it and retrieve it.

"Well Mia, I did it," he said. "I did it for you. May your spirit roam free and discover much." He paused. "I love you."

He sighed again and looked down. He had done it. He had committed the body and the spirit of the only one he truly loved to the ocean.

'My ocean,' Isaac thought as a solitary tear dripped off his chin and descended into the blue water.

'My Ocean of Tears.'

END


End file.
